@Ricardo Carvalho: "If gay marriage is contrary to God's will, I am
confident that He will deal with it in His own way in the hereafter."

He's already dealt with it... in His Holy Bible: 'You shall
not lie with a male as one lies with a female; it is an abomination.'
Leviticus 18:22

@Bob K:"... there is no legal or moral
justification to continue to put a group of tax paying citizens out in the cold
to please churches."

I think you're onto something... What
you seem to be saying is, there's no justification to deny any types of
marriage arrangements including polygamy, incestuous types, pedophilia types,
etc... You name it.

Why does everybody care so much if gay marriage is legal? If you don't
believe in gay marriage, don't get gay married. It's that simple.
Stop worrying about things that have no affect on you whatsoever.

Let us not forget those who have raised their voices for the Constitution. Those
who proclaimed the standard of the Constitution, but failed to comprehend the
day that the Constitution would one day become their own demise. All the talk of
retaining the Constitution that would hang by a thread. The reality is that the
Constitution has been and continues to be interpreted by the prevailing judicial
process without regard to Christian value. Those who have promoted
Constitutional value as inspired, did not understand that it applied to its
conception and not what we have today. The Constitution of today legalizes
abortions, denies prayer in school, allows citizens to arm themselves and
enmasse munitions because of fear of their fellowman and now recognizing
marriage as outside the law as the Creator subscribed. We have heard from
pulpits and rallies "the Constitution"the Constitution", without the
vision and forsight that laws regulated by undiciplined men who Amend the
Constitution would become their nemesis. In the past it was "Communism"
and Socialism as America, s enemy's, when the real enemy is its own
political, religious and secular leaders and the lack of vision by its people.

Long live Traditional Marriage! So tragic to see our society become
desensitized at an alarming pace over the past couple decades regarding gay
marriage. Our worlds become very good at justifying sin by claiming gay
marriage to be a fundamental right. What will it be next? The strength of our
society is collapsing before our eyes.

The concept of harm is inherent throughout the
Constitution and our legal system. I'm sorry that you refuse to see it, but
it's there nonetheless.

And every judge of every court in this
land understands it, despite your failure to do so.

"How can you
be sure? "

Every lawyer who has brought gay marriage cases before
US courts has tried desperately to prove harm. They have all failed -- and
that's why their cases have failed in court.

"there is
'harm' in some heterosexual marriages. ..."

Again --
it's about increased risk of harm compared to other forms of marriage --
just as the legality of drunk driving is based on the fact that it's *more*
dangerous than sober driving.

"harm....is not from the marriage
but probably from religious or other teachings."

From Justice
Bauman, reaffirming Canada's polygamy ban: ""Polygamy's harm
to society includes the critical fact that a great many of its individual harms
are not specific to any particular religious, cultural or regional context. They
can be generalized and expected to occur wherever polygamy exists."

So sad that the governor is racing to take away the rights of a few hundred
Utahns seeking to marry rather than deal with the millions in Utah facing the
worst air quality in the nation and its health affects on tens of thousands of
Utahns, including children and the unborn. Where are his priorities?

Most of us would not be here if we didn't care about members of the LDS
Church.We would have left! We stay because of the people we love, despite the
fact that so many people oppose us! Every day I work with Mormons and they know
who I am! They helped me through some of the hardest times in my life and
without words, I felt their support. It was so strong that I actually went
around and thanked them. How do we make people see that we are only doing what
we feel is right for us? We haven't demanded that anyone change their
beliefs! Nobody can do that! I don't even try. We have to stand up for
ourselves! I can't help it if someone believes that I am abomination! I
will stand up and say "NO". I will not accept that definition of me!
Some of take it upon yourselves to judge not only us, but other members for
supporting us! A lot of pain is caused by doing that! I try not to do it. I do
love the Church. People asume so much!

Chaos usually follows when peoples bigotry has been turned on it's head.
See Alabama in the 1960's for an example.Same sex marriage will be allowed
in the entire country. It is only a matter of time. In the interim, those who
value freedom and equality for all must remain vigilant. The reason is that the
domestic enemies of this great nation are not dead yet, they are like a wounded
animal. Stay vigilant until the last breath of bigotry has been exhaled.

The only real chaos is that opponents don't want the judge's decision
to be implemented. Until a higher court overrules the decision, it is the law.
You do believe in upholding the law, don't you, Governor?

Utah is not a theocracy! There is a clear line of separation in the
Constitution of Church and State. A marriage license, has always been, since its
inception in the early 1900's, a legal contract (mostly having to do with
property ownership and transfer)between a couple and the State of issuance.
Nowhere in the United States is it mandatory to have a religious ceremony in
order to legitimize or legalize a marriage. Likewise, there is no legal
standing for anyone to sue a Church over their decision to not marry anyone in
particular, be they same sex or different religions or races. The Constitution
protects both the secular and non-secular. This has nothing to do with the LDS
Church or any other Church. It is a state issue and the sooner our government
remembers they are not a ruling Theocracy the better. Not only will denying Utah
same-sex couples the right to marry cruel and unjust, in the bigger picture, all
the "rainy day money" Utah has saved to go to social service programs
and education will be eaten up in lengthy, protracted lawsuits that they will
lose, just like California did.

"The reality is that the Constitution has been and continues to be
interpreted by the prevailing judicial process without regard to Christian
value."

The reality is that the Constitution continues to be
interpreted without regard for what it SAYS or what was INTENDED.

Sadly Utahns never realized their vote on Amendment 3 was pointless.
Apparently the (fill in the blank?)-given right to marry someone of your own
gender has been enshrined in the 14th Amendment all along! Many of us were just
too unsophisticated to see it. We shouldn't feel bad though. Even the
drafters and ratifiers of the 14th Amendment never saw it!

Seriously,
the Equal Protection Clause and Due Process Clause have been around for close to
150 years, and it is only NOW that we are finding out that SSM is required by
them?? It takes an amazing amount of hubris to view one's own judgment as
so much more enlightened and superior to the majority of a state's
population, not to mention those who gave us the Constitution and all prior
generations of recorded history.

I am surprised to read your arguments against calling
marriage a 'right'.

Intuitively, don't you feel you
have the "right' to marry the person of your choice? If not, why
not?

The best legal minds in the country have repeatedly agreed that
marriage IS a 'right'.

Indeed, from the founding of the
country it has been a principle of the Constitution that 'rights' in
here in each individual, and cannot be granted by the Constitution or the
Government - rights can only be protected by law. As such, each individual has
an inherent set of "un-enumerated rights", including the right to marry
the consenting person of their choice, and the Bill of RIGHTS clearly states:

"The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not
be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people."

In other words, just because marriage is not 'enumerated' in the
Constitution or its amendments does not mean individuals do not have it as a
'right'. By contrast, nowhere in the Constitution does it mention
specific "(licensed) privileges", much less marriage as one of them.

The arguments against same-sex marriage seem to be the poster doesn't like
it, the poster's religion doesn't like it, it will legalize the abuse
of animals and children, it will solve all the legal issues surrounding polygamy
thereby making polygamy legal , and/or it will cause the apopalyptic end of the
world.

Not legally valid reasons for a law.

When the
State of Utah argued against same-sex marriage before Judge Shelby, the
arguments were that the gold standard for families is married heterosexual
parents and the primary purpose of marriage is stability for children conceived
accidentally or on purpose. They also stated they allow infertile couples to
marry because those coulpes may raise children who are not able to be raised by
their biological parents.

The State of Utah did not present one
single reason why same-sex couples should not be allowed to marry. They did not
disagree with the facts presented by the same-sex couples.

The only
way Judge Shelby could have legally found for the State would have been to make
up evidence not presented - which would have been activism and overstepping
bounds.

Since judge Shelby considers himself more powerful than the population of Utah,
but he failed to rule that all the county offices had to stay open on the
weekend and cater to this small minority. I do have a serious question: If
marriage is so important to these folks why haven't they planned a holiday
to Vermont or Hawaii and done the deed there? All of a sudden its such a
catastrophy? Sorry I don't understand other than it being some symbolic
thing.

"Here, it is not the Constitution that has changed, but the knowledge of
what it means to be gay or lesbian. The court cannot ignore the fact that the
Plaintiffs are able to develop a committed, intimate relationship with a person
of the same sex but not with a person of the opposite sex. The court, and the
State, must adapt to this changed understanding."Judge Shelby

Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “Let us realize the arc of the moral
universe is long, but it bends toward justice.”

Such hate comments directed at a successful governor (for a state with a
thriving economy and an unemployment rate that has dropped to 4.3%), for his
desire to make sure the First Amendment rights of his state's citizens are
not being unduly overturned by one activist judge in preference for a small
radical group.

And to top it off, these comments are coming from
those who complain about the lack of tolerance in our society. Maybe they feel
tolerance is lacking because they don't feel it in themselves.

Thank you for fighting for what's right
and the will of the people. If the will of the people has no meaning, American
has ceased to exist. Please continue and know that "We The People"
support you and your efforts.

Now you know how we Californians feel. When the Government no longer respects
the laws of the land, then it's integrity is compromised. Therefore the
citizens may feel their respect of the of the government and the decisions it
issues are null. Next step is anarchy.